


And the reason is you

by akfanficlove



Series: Don't you want my teenage dream? - A Dalton AU [19]
Category: Dalton Academy Series, Glee
Genre: Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Choices, Dalton Academy Warblers, Fluff, Harry Styles - Freeform, Hurt/Comfort, Inspired by Music, M/M, Nationals, Original Character(s), San Francisco, Show Choir, Sneaking Out, break in, community Story, darren criss references, eventual seblaine, harry styles inspired, night out, polls, seblaine, seblaine endgame
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:47:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27921010
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/akfanficlove/pseuds/akfanficlove
Summary: The Warblers are going to Nationals! After Sebastian finally said those few little words, it's up to Blaine to decide with whom he wants to be: Go back to a life with Kurt in New York? Or risk it all by taking a chance on a relationship with Sebastian? Blaine hopes this weekend will lead to clarity.Title from Hoobastank's "The reason" because I saw this awesome fanvid on YouTube by @ryzh (linked it in my story) and I kind of forgot how much I used to love this song. Multi-chapter.
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Sebastian Smythe
Series: Don't you want my teenage dream? - A Dalton AU [19]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1853698
Comments: 34
Kudos: 43





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, I really miss San Francisco, so I put all my love for this city and our beautiful boys into this chapter. Watch out, it's a long one. Choices you made for this chapter via my Insta-story:
> 
> \- Seb shares a room with Hunter (80%)  
> \- Warblers win or loose but it's a close call (67%)  
> \- The group number will be "Bohemian Rhapsody" (86%)  
> \- Blaine falls asleep on Seb's shoulder (60%)  
> \- The weekend will end with Blaine saying "I might be in love with you" (83%) - but will he say it to Sebastian?
> 
> Only one way to find out ⬇

Before, we dive right in, this is the beautiful video I was talking about:

Thursday is full of homework and bag packing, so rehearsal is delayed until Friday morning. It’s a mess. Nick almost sprains his ankle when he trips over Trent’s foot, David always forgets the last refrain of “Bohemian Rhapsody” and Hunter is so on edge, he makes Jeff cry. Twice.

Fair to say they are nervous when they leave San Francisco’s airport after a good 7 hours of flying. It’s already evening and they share taxis that bring them to their hotel in Russian Hill. It’s not much but they’ll spend most of their day tomorrow at Stuart Hall High School anyways, that’s where the competition would take place.

They grab their suitcases and split up to their respective rooms. Blaine is rooming with David since Nick is staying with Jeff, Sebastian shares with Hunter since their still co-captains (and Sebastian’s request for a single was declined by the group – all 5 times he brought it up).

It’s almost 8pm when Blaine, David, Hunter, Trent, Beat, Nick, Jeff and Sebastian meet up for dinner down on the street, the others staying in and just ordering food. They are all out of their uniforms, the Californian weather too warm for their blazers compared to the chill in Ohio.

The pathways are small, so they have to walk behind each other – not that Sebastian would mind it **that much** to walk behind Blaine. Especially not when he’s wearing those red chinos that hide nothing. Sure, the little bowtie is a little ridiculous but it’s also pretty adorable.

“Seb?” His head snaps up from where he was pretty unashamedly staring at Blaine’s ass and he’s met with a disapproving glare. Sebastian can just shrug and smirk and Blaine blushes a pretty pink before he shakes his head and smiles. _Bashful schoolboy at its finest…_

“He suggested”, Hunter begins with annoyance clear in his voice, “that we get dinner at this Italian restaurant over there. Everyone else was fine with that, what about you, Smythe?”

Sebastian tears his gaze away from Blaine’s blushing face and looks at Hunter: “Sure, Captain! Lead the way, Sir…”, he smirks and winks. Hunter rolls his eyes and mumbles something that might be “ _Should’ve let you drown in your misery on Wednesday, cocky bastard_ ” but all Sebastian hears is the beautiful sound of Blaine chuckling next to him.

He could die a happy man if he only heard that sound for the rest of his life and _, wow, sappy much?_ , runs through his mind but then Blaine smiles at him and he forgets what he just thought.

The restaurant is rather small and they are lucky to even get a table. So they squeeze into the little booth and Sebastian ends with his legs pressed against Blaine’s. It shouldn’t make his heart skip as much as it does. _Ridiculous, really._

They all share bruschetta and two of the biggest pizzas they’ve ever seen and when Blaine orders dessert for them all in fluent Italian with a bright smile, the waitress won’t stop gushing about him and even sneaks them some wine with a wink. They are still underage and they don’t even want to get drunk the night before their big competition but the fruity red wine creates a warmth inside of their stomachs that mixes with their giddiness and excitement. Sebastian even sees Hunter genuinely laughing about one of David’s “You remember when the Warblers…”-stories from back in the days. It’s a pretty good evening,

Because there’s also Blaine next to him: One time during a joke by Nick, Blaine laughs hard and hides his face in Sebastian’s shoulder. Another time, Blaine is excitedly telling a story about McKinley ( _something about a new Rachel? Whatever that is?_ ) and when he’s finished, he sits back and their eyes meet and hold each other’s gaze for a second or two longer than what seems appropriate before they both avert their eyes and blush. And then, then there’s the time when Sebastian tells the story of him and friends in Paris climbing the Eiffel Tower at 3am and suddenly, there’s Blaine’s hand on his thigh and Sebastian almost misses the punchline. It’s a very good night.

Around 11pm they leave the restaurant because there is one Warbers’ tradition that still needs to be fulfilled before they can head back to their hotel. It takes a little longer since Trent’s phone sends them in the wrong direction more than once but then they are there: Stuart Hall High School. They look at each other: Sneaking in on stage the night before a competition.

“Alright, boys, let’s go”, Blaine says.

Entering the school is way easier than it should be. A few bills and the janitor obviously had no problem leaving the backdoor to the auditorium open for them. It looks like a beautiful old theater inside, plush red seats and a lot of white marble and dark wood. The stage is pretty big, made for big plays or, well, school choir competitions. Much bigger than their common room where they practice or even the stage at McKinley.

They are standing on stage, looking at each other when Sebastian says: “So guys, how about an impromptu performance? Any suggestions?”

Beat is the first one to start:

_“[If you ain't got no money take yo' broke ass home.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0SyUgw98tE&ab_channel=FergieVEVO)_

[ _You say: If you ain't got no money take yo' broke ass home.”_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0SyUgw98tE&ab_channel=FergieVEVO)

For a moment, Blaine laughs out loud when everybody joins in with “ _G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S, yeah G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S_ ” but then he starts singing lead:

_“We flying first class_

_Up in the sky_

_Poppin' champagne_

_Livin' my life_

_In the fast lane_

_And I won't change_

_For the glamorous, oh the flossy flossy”_

He can’t believe how good it feels when the rest sings the chorus with him. They are standing on stage in a foreign school they entered without permission, singing a fucking Fergie-song. It’s ridiculous and it’s amazing.

Nick and Jeff take over for the second verse:

_“Wear them gold and diamonds rings_

_All them things don't mean a thing_

_Chaperons and limousines_

_Shopping for expensive things_

_I be on the movie screens_

_Magazines and boogie scenes_

_I'm not clean, I'm not pristine_

_I'm no queen, I'm no machine”_

And then Sebastian’s voice captures his attention when he, well, raps and Blaine can’t help but join. He hasn’t tried to rap since New Directions’ “Fly/I Believe I Can Fly”-mashup but this is for fun, so he looks at Sebastian when their voices blend together and they are dancing in circles around each other:

_“I still go to Taco Bell_

_Drive through, raw as Hell_

_I don't care, I'm still real_

_No matter how many records I sell”_

_“After the show or after the Grammys_

_I like to go cool out with the family_

_Sippin', reminiscing on days when I had a Mustang_

_And now I'm in”_

_We flying the first class_

_Up in the sky_

_Poppin' champagne_

_Livin' my life_

_In the fast lane_

_And I won't change_

_For the glamorous, oh the flossy flossy_

_The glamorous_

_The glamorous, glamorous (the glamorous life)_

_For the glamorous, oh the flossy flossy_

_The glamorous_

_The glamorous, glamorous (the glamorous life)_

_For the glamorous, oh the flossy flossy”_

Hunter takes over for the faster rap part of the song but Blaine doesn’t take his eyes off of Sebastian. _How can someone so tall move so smooth?_ Before he knows, the song is almost over:

_“I got problems up to here_

_I've got people in my ear_

_Telling me these crazy things_

_That I don't want to know (fuck y'all)_

_I've got money in the bank_

_And I'd really like to thank_

_All the fans, I'd like to thank_

_Thank you really though_

_'Cause I remember yesterday_

_When I dreamt about the days_

_When I'd rock on MTV, that be really dope_

_Damn, It's been a long road_

_And the industry is cold_

_I'm glad my daddy told me so, he let his daughter know_

_my daddy told me so, he let his daughter know_

_my daddy told me so, he let his daughter know”_

There’s silence that follows their last note. That is, until Blaine starts giggling. “Dude, did you just **rap** , Sebastian?”

The giggle turns into a full laugh and the others join when they see how Sebastian actually blushes a little.

“Shut up, Anderson… Hunter was even worse!”

“Don’t kid yourself, Smythe, I was flawless”, Hunter argues and makes a dismissive hand gesture.

Soon, they are all laughing and leaving the stage, leaving the school through the backdoor the same way they came. It’s a 30-minutes-walk back to their hotel. They aren’t tipsy but they feel lightheaded with all the excitement from being in San Francisco and Nationals and the brotherhood that unites them.

It’s still not cold per se but colder than when they left and Blaine is walking next to Sebastian, talking about which other choirs will be there tomorrow when suddenly, the wind picks up and he hisses and shivers. He really didn’t expect it to turn so chilly, he should’ve brought a pullover or something.

“Are you cold?” Sebastian looks at him worriedly.

“It’s okay, just a bit windy.” Blaine smiles.

Sebastian looks at him, then at the goosebumps on his naked arms and raises an eyebrow. _Yeah, okay, maybe he is a little cold..._

He then notices Sebastian shrugging his leather jacket off and handing it to Blaine. He looks up at Sebastian:“Seb, I can’t, really, I mean, I really don’t want you to freeze, or, I don’t know, maybe get a cold or something…”

Sebastian just laughs. “It’s alright, Killer, take the goddamn jacket and put it on.” He smiles down like he finds Blaine’s resistance ridiculous but cute. “Can’t have our star singer shuddering, right? Well, not because of the temperature, anyways”, he winks.

Blaine feels his cheeks heat up. _That’s so Sebastian._ You think you got him figured out and then he does something as cheesy as handing him his jacket like in a 90s high school movie. Though, Blaine would be lying if he said that he doesn't think it's incredibly romantic. When Blaine wraps the fabric around him, a wave of Sebastian’s cologne hits him and makes him a little dizzy for a moment. _How can someone walk around all day and by the end of the day still smell so delicious?_

“Thank you, Sebastian”, Blaine smiles.

“Anytime, Killer. Feeling better?” Blaine nods. It’s still chilly but that can’t be helped… _right?_ Blaine side-glances at Sebastian. _Maybe he could…?_

Blaine takes Sebastian’s right arm and slings it around his neck. Then he tucks himself closer to Sebastian’s body and wraps an arm around his waist. “Even better” he says but doesn’t dare look at Sebastian until he feels a squeeze at his shoulder and Sebastian tugging him even closer. It’s weird, walking like that, Sebastian’s steps longer and Blaine has to make two for one to keep up but the swirling sensation in his belly is so worth the awkwardness. They keep walking like that until they reach the front door of their hotel and the stairs upstairs are just wide enough for one person. Still, they part a little reluctantly.

“Alright, alright, boys, breakfast at 9am sharp, already showered and in uniform, please”, Hunter drones, “Make sure to pack an extra shirt - just in case - water, snacks, and whatever you need. Anderson, tone down the gel. Nixon, grab the calming pills. Duval – I don’t want another tomato sauce-incident, you also pack extra slacks! Sterling, think about the instant ice packs and the heat patches.”

They just stand there and stare at Hunter, awaiting more orders, smirking.

“What? Hush, hush. Go to bed, it’s late and tomorrow’s a big day.” He shakes his head but his smile is quite... fondly? Blaine turns to follow after David. Sebastian is still standing next to him and he smiles at him: “Goodnight, Seb.”

“Night, B, see you tomorrow”, Sebastian answers and heads towards his and Hunter’s room.

Blaine is sitting on his bed, loosening his shoe laces when he notices, he’s still wearing Sebastian’s jacket. He’d never admit it, but when he lays it down to rest on his pillow for the time he changes into his pajamas, rinses out the gel and brushes his teeth, he kind of hopes the smell transfers. And when he tucks himself under the blanket, he imagines it did.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So @flash9614 gave me this idea that there isn't enough jealous!Blaine in this fandom and I thought: "That's true!" So I included it 😄 That's why I'm so grateful for every feedback you give, it tends to push me towards things I didn't think of and makes my stories better 🥰

There’s a beeping sound chasing away his dreams of being a food tester for a candy company just as he was about to bite into a huge donut covered in navy blue and red frosting. Blaine groans as his hand stretches out to turn off the alarm. He slowly blinks his eyes open and sees David emerge from the bathroom.

“Good morning, sunshine! Ready to go?”

Blaine sits up and rubs his eyes. “Why are you so chipper already?”

David freezes and turns around. Then, he laughs. “Oh my, I just realized we never shared a room before, I didn’t know you even could be so grumpy in the morning!”

Blaine falls back onto the pillow and turns around again. “ ‘S too early for a conversation…”, he mumbles. He’s about to snooze a little when he feels the mattress dip suddenly under David’s weight and the other boy shakes his whole body, repeating “Get up, get up, get up!” all over again. Blaine sighs. _Should’ve shared a room with Trent – he might snore but at least he’s quiet until his first coffee…_

He looks at the alarm clock on his bedside table: 8:10am. He needs to get up if he wants to shower and be able to do his hair without being in hurry. So he crawls out of bed, grabs the uniform he prepared on a stool in their room and heads towards the bathroom door.

Breakfast goes smoothly and soon they are in taxis taking them to Stuart Hall High School. Ms. Dubois, their chaperone, is with them and talks excitedly with Sebastian – in French, of course. He is her favorite student after all and he tries to keep it that way. More often than not, he fell asleep in her class after a night out (before Blaine) or was caught daydreaming (about Blaine) and he'd really like to keep his straight A, _thank you very much_.

Hunter heads into the school to get the paperwork for registration done and texts Sebastian a few minutes later where their assigned classroom is supposed to be. Ms. Dubois accompanies them there, then excuses herself to go whereever the teachers gather. Her chaperone-status is a formality at best, only to keep up appearances. The Warblers have handled their own business for years now but Dalton is, of course, way to prestigious and compliant to have underage students travel the country all by themselves.

About half an hour later, Hunter appears with papers to sign and the order in which the teams will perform. It’s 16 teams, they are number 10, shortly after the break. They all sign privacy statements and copies of the rules they agree to follow (like “no drugs or doping” – _really? Doping for a school choir competition? How ridiculous is that?_ ). Hunter gathers all the documents.

“Sebastian, would you come with me? We need to bring them back and then we could grab a round of tea and coffee for everyone?” Sebastian nods and looks at his watch: About 2 more hours until the competition starts, so probably about 4 more hours until their performance.

“Sure! Guys, Hunter and I will grab some tea- and coffeepots. As soon as we’re back, we’ll start warming up vocals and our bodies, so find yourself a cup and loose the blazers. 10 minutes.”

“You need help carrying?”, Blaine asks. Sebastian smiles. “I guess, we’ll be fine, B, thanks. Just make sure nobody accidently kills himself until we get back, will you?” He winks and Blaine nods earnestly. _He’s too cute…_

Blaine would be lying if he said that he’s not nervous. He is. This is Nationals and it’s his Senior Year. His last chance to win another championship. His last chance to win a title with his brothers.

He thinks back about Nationals last year and how different the Warblers operate from New Directions. Their setlist has been ready for weeks, the dancing carefully choreographed by Sebastian, their voices trained to perfection by Hunter (he still doesn’t particularly **like** Hunter but he has to give credit where credit is due). They all hit a bump with the fight between Sebastian and him last week but that is forgotten now. Well, for now.

He knows, he still owes Sebastian an answer about what he wants. He just wishes it would be clearer to him what that is. He really likes Sebastian, that’s for sure. He likes how he makes him feel, always made him feel right from that first “Uptown Girl”-performance, and he likes how it always seems to be so easy with Sebastian. He doesn’t have to hide any of his sides, Sebastian straight up tells him when he’s talking crap but it’s the little things he does for him that Blaine really remembers.

Like, how Sebastian came over after Blaine was so sure he failed his English test, his “Back to the Future”- movie collection in one hand and sweet popcorn in the other (because he knows Blaine really likes Michael J. Fox and thinks salty popcorn is work of the devil). Or how he always adds sprinkles on the whipped cream of his hot chocolate. Or how he always answers his texts or calls, always, even if just to say they need to talk later because he’s in practice or busy studying. Kurt never really did that.

Still, Kurt will always be his first love. They had their ups and downs but they planned a future together, shared dreams of Broadway and making art and kids. Dreams that could still come true if he makes the choice to try. Kurt always needed him, he could protect him and maybe it could be like that again. They sure both learned from their break-up, right? Kurt was the one he was meant to be with after all. They worked when they were both a McKinley, they could make it work again if Blaine went to NYADA. When. Or maybe “if”?

Blaine sighs and shakes his head as he looks around the room. Everybody is bustling with energy. _Competition today, thinking tomorrow…_

They both balance 4 pods with freshly cooked coffee and green tea. It’s just the stairs and then they can finally start warming up and preparing for their performance.

“So…”, Hunter begins, “you and Blaine… you’re alright again?”

“Well, we’re talking again. I apologized. So, yeah, I guess we are.” He looks at Hunter sideways. “No need for any sudden confessions to the principal, if that’s what you wanna know.”

Hunter sighs. “You know I only did that to leave you no other option. You and Anderson, you’re both so goddamn stubborn and you both always feel like you’re right. I needed something you couldn’t squirm free of.”

The are both silent for a while when they reach the stairs. “You would’ve really told him?”, Sebastian asks.

“Bet your ass I would have.” Hunter looks at him when they start climbing the stairs. “But I really didn’t want to.”

Sebastian nods. “I know I – ouf!”

A body crashes into his and he struggles to not fall down the few stairs the already conquered and keep everything in his hands. _What the fuck?!_ He turns around to give whoever that was a piece of his mind but when he looks up at the guy who is still holding on to his arm to keep himself from falling, his mind goes blank and his eyes go wide. _Wow…_

“Oh shit, I’m sorry, I'm so sorry! Did I hurt you?” Green eyes worriedly roam over his body. They are part of a pretty face framed by wild, light brown curls.

“No, I’m…”, Sebastian clears his throat, “I’m fine.”

The boy smiles at him and Sebastian can’t help but smile back. He is wearing a black shirt, deep pink blazer in his hand - the hand that is still clutching Sebastian’s biceps. Sebastian looks at the hand, then at the boy, raises an eye brow and smirks. The other boy laughs sheepishly, blushes and releases his grip… One day Sebastian’s weekness for blushing boys will be the death of him, he knows it.

“Sorry, I… umm, I… sorry I crashed into you like that…” _He’s flustered, that’s just way to easy._

“Oh, please, anything to save a pretty boy’s life, I’m a hero like that.”

The boy laughs. “Really, do that often?”

“Sometimes. But on weekends only for the **really** cute ones”, Sebastian smirks and winks.

“Lucky me then, I guess.” He smiles. “I’m James Cohen but everybody calls me Jay.”

“Sebastian Smythe.”

“Very nice to meet you, Sebastian.”

“You too. What group are you with?”

Jay opens his mouth to speak when a “Sebastian! Up here, now!” hollers down the stairs. Sebastian looks up and sees Hunter and Blaine leaning over the handrail. Sebastian sighs.

“Well, looks like my attendance is demanded. It was very nice meeting you, Jay, maybe I’ll see you later.” He smiles and turns to climb the steps.

He stops when he feels a hand on his arm: “Throat explosion. I’m with Throat Explosion. Stupid name, I know, but we’re really good.”

Sebastian smirks. “Bet you are…” He looks James up and down. The other boy just chuckles and puts his blazer on.

“Well, we’re in room B1.07, right down the hallway here, if you want to come over later to congratulate us after we win.”

“Cocky **and** delusional, interesting combination”, Sebastian answers with not much bite and more playfulness in his voice. “Maybe I’ll come by later. See you around, James.” He climbs the last few steps with a smile and a head shake.

_We’ll see who’ll congratulate whom later…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, what a twist! Oh, and I chose Harry Styles as the model for the guy Sebastian crashes into because  
> 1) he could still pull off being in high school, I think  
> 2) he's obviously cute and I needed someone similar but also different from Blaine  
> 3) my best friend really, really likes him, talks about him about as much as I talk about Darren and, therefore, as much as I didn't really care about him before, he kind of grew on me.
> 
> Also, I really like the name "James" and, yes, "Cohen" is an OC California-refernce because Seth will always live in my heart. But enough about that, let's keep the story going!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You wanted James to be British - I tried my best 😄 Let's see how this little rivalry goes on.

Blaine’s lips are in a tight line and his eyes narrowed when Sebastian passes him by with the pods and a way to happy smile. _What was that?_ Or rather: **_Who_** _was that?_

Blaine looks after the boy in the pink blazer and he feels an all too familiar feeling creeping up on him, curling in his stomach, running through his blood and burning his veins. He knows, flirting for Sebastian is like second nature but still. Yeah, Sebastian is handsome but Blaine can’t help but dislike the feeling of boys flocking around his… his… friend.

“You coming, Blaine?” Blaine looks around to see Nick standing in the door. He nods and walks into the room.

“You okay? Don’t worry, we’re gonna be fine. No offense, but we’re not ND, we got a good plan and it will be awesome. No need to be nervous.” Nick smiles assuringly at him and they get in formation for warm-ups. If only Nick’s smile could help soothe the grumbling in his stomach Blaine is at least 90% sure has nothing to do with their performance but with the smile Sebastian gave that stranger on the stairs.

They make it through vocal warm-ups and muscle stretching before they start with their opening song, “Bohemian Rhapsody”, and the last notes of “Anyway the wind blows...” mix with Blaine’s “Tonight I'm gonna have myself a real good time…” from “Don’t stop me now”. It’s mesmerizing to watch one Queen-song bloom into another, to see Blaine emerge from the group number to his solo and completely shift the atmosphere in the room. _Flawless_ , Sebastian thinks.

Blaine is dancing and prancing around the room, the choreo more a loose order of where he should be in which position at what point of the song than a real choreography. Sebastian figured using Blaine’s natural charisma and charm would be better than to put him in a corset of step-touch-turn and he was right.

Sebastian’s eyes widen and he almost misses his cue to change the formation when Blaine jumps on one of the chairs with a little too much energy and almost falls. Luckily, Blaine catches himself and keeps singing like nothing happened before hopping down again.

Everbody is lining up behind Blaine when the song comes to an end. There’s just “Dark Side” left. It’s the highlight, combines their two soloists’ voices and has the most demanding choreography in all of Warbler-history (not that that’s much of a stretch compared to the usual sidestep they had going on for a few years, to be honest).

The opening notes of “Dark Side” roll effortlessly from the rest of the group and Sebastian is actually kind of… proud. He’d never admit how much this song means to him, how he still remembers Blaine coming over to Dalton, remembers slipping that blazer on his body, remembers the hesitation in Blaine’s eyes. He thought he’d never trust him again, tried to convince himself he didn’t care.

And now here Blaine is, singing the exact same song they sang to each other months ago, Blaine back in place with the group he never should’ve left and with Sebastian next to him. Or, _well, possibly, maybe, if he choses him over Hummel._ His smile falters for a moment before he shakes those thoughts off. _Competition today, thinking tomorrow…_

They hit the last note and silence follows before they all erupt into cheer. Blaine turns around and smiles up at Sebastian who looks… _proud? Is that what it is?_ Blaine laughs and hugs him.

“We got this, Seb, we so got this! This was amazing!”

His eyes are big and brimming with joy and Sebastian smiles down at him before he yells: “Alright, good job, everyone. Take 15, make sure to drink something and not just slump down so your muscles don’t get cold again.”

He lets go of Blaine and heads towards the desk where they put the tea and coffee. “You want some?”, he asks Blaine.

“Green tea with honey. For my vocal chords.” He grins and cocks his head. “Wouldn’t want to risk anything so close to cmpetition, right?”

Sebastian chuckles. “I doubt anything could ruin your voice, Killer.”

“Very true”, a voice behind them drawls and they turn around. _Wait, isn’t that the boy from the stairs? What is he doing here?_

“Jay! What are you doing here?”

Blaine looks from the stranger to Sebastian and back. “Umm, excuse me, this is a **private** practice…?”

Sebastian laughs. “Okay, okay, calm down, Killer. I’m sure he’s not here to spy on us and steal our setlist, right?”

The stranger just laughs, then extends a hand towards Blaine: “No, I’m not, who would do that? Sounds like something didgy that would happen in a high school drama series. Anyway: Hi, mate, I’m James but everyone calls me Jay. And you are Blaine Anderson, right?”

_Mate? What the hell is a British student doing at an American school choir competition?_

Blaine’s brows furrow. “How do you know my name?”

__

James’ eyes widen in surprise like Blaine’s question is totally ridiculous. “Umm, the bloody show choir blogs, duh?” He laughs. “You’re all over it. Caused quite a stir when you transferred to McKinley and then back again to Dalton. Didn’t you know that?”

 _Of course he **knew** that._ He reads every blog entry on schoolchoirbroadway.com – he just didn’t really expect anyone else to do that. When he proposed a mandatory reading assignment for every Warbler to Hunter, he just laughed.

Blaine looks down where James is still holding out his hand, suddenly remembers his manners and shakes it. He doesn’t really like this guy but he’s a Dalton boy and his mother raised him well. He smiles a tight smile.

“Of course, I just didn’t expect you to recognize me, I guess. Yes, I’m Blaine Anderson, pleased to meet you, James.”

_Maybe he purposely doesn’t use James’ nickname._

“So, you’re competing today? Sorry, I'm confused, you're British right?”

James smiles brightly. “I am! Exchange student for a year. And yes, we’re number 5, a few performances before you. Which is great, so I guess we’re already back when you go on stage and I get to watch you.”

 _Yeah, sooo_ _great._

“And if you don’t mind me asking, what exactly are you doing here in our room now? Shouldn’t you be practicing with your group?”, Blaine asks. Sebastian throws him a side-glance but if James’ hears the annoyance in Blaine’s voice, he completely ignores it.

"What Blaine means is, isn't your group missing you?"

_Yeah... Nope. Not really what he meant._

“Oh yeah, I’ll head down soon. I just wanted to let Bas here know”

_Wait, Bas?!_

“that there is an aftershow-party at Ghirardelli Square later that evening.”

_Does he have to lay his hand on Sebastian’s arm that long?!_

“And if nobody told you that yet, I wanted to invite you.”

_Is he squeezing his upper arm?!_

“No matter how this ends tonight, we should celebrate, innit?”

Blaine watches James squeeze Sebastian’s arm once more while smiling at him before his hand slides down his arm and finally lets go.

“Sure, we’d love to come”, Sebastian says and smiles. “No better way to celebrate our 1st place by rubbing it into everyone’s face, huh?”

James laughs and playfully shoves him. “Shut up, you didn’t win yet!”

“Oh, I just have that feeling that we’re gonna be epic tonight, you know?”, Sebastian winks.

_Is he fucking flirting with this guy?!_

“Sure, I'm chuffed to bits! I can’t wait, especially if it’ll be as impressive as what I just saw. So… see you in the auditorium?”

Sebastian nods. James smiles. Blaine frowns.

“It was really nice meeting you, Blaine, bye mates!” James waves towards the rest of the group. Blaine stands there, tight smile frozen to his face and he feels like back then with Barry all over again.

“Cat got your tongue?” He blinks and looks up at Sebastian.

“What?”

“An invitation to a party and you don’t go all out to show your gratitude? Who are you and what have you done with Blaine?” Sebastian laughs and turns back to get his coffee ready.

“Where did you two meet?” Blaine knows it sounds rude and suspicious but he lacks the patience to carefully lead up to the core of the conversation.

“He crashed into me on the stairs when Hunter and me went to get coffee and tea.”

“You seemed particularly close for people who just met.”

“I don’t know how to answer that... He crashed into me, we talked for bit, we both went our ways until he obviously came up to the room to invite us to the party. That’s it.”

“I see.”

Sebastian looks up and frowns. “You see what?”

“Nothing.”

Sebastian sighs. “Blaine, this is not turning into a Barry-situation again, is it?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Sure…”

Sebastian hands Blaine a cup: Green tea and honey, like Blaine wanted. He sighs and tries to smile.

“Sorry, I guess, I’m just a little thin-skinned today with the competition and all.” _That must be it…_

Sebastian smiles gently. “It’s okay, that’s normal. Drink your tea, another roll in 5?”

Blaine nods. When Sebastian leaves him to annouce that to the rest of the Warblers, he exhales. He has no idea who this James-guy is but he doesn’t like him. Not at all. He’d have to make sure Sebastian stays **far away** from this boy tonight.

Blaine nods to himself. He has to protect Sebastian, has to protext his… _friend_ … from the grabby hands of some weird stranger he’ll never see again, lulling Sebastian in with a cheeky smile and way to long lingering touches. _He’s, like, so rude, like, can you believe it?_

Blaine shakes his head and finishes his tea. _James wants to seduce and use Sebastian? Yeah, not on his watch._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next part will probably be published on Sunday. If you don't want to wait that long, feel free to check out my "Extraordinary Merry Seblaine-Christmas"-series (yes, I know I need to work on forming shorter titles).


	4. Chapter 4

**For everyone who didn't read my previous story called " _My baby makes me feel like I've been livin' in a fairytale_ " from Blaine's birthday party: You should probably read that first or you might not get some references. [Just click here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26106103) \- and then come back because our boys are about to perform!! 🥰**

_Dum-dum. Dum-dum. Dum-dum._

He can hear his heartbeat in his ears.

_Dum-dum. Dum-dum. Dum-dum._

It’s a dull, thumbing sound, vibrating through his whole body.

_Dum-dum. Dum-dum. Dum-dum._

His tie feels to tight, his blazer to loose, he grips the plush red armrest until his knuckles turn white and his whole body is tense, it’s getting hard to breath and then suddenly –

Suddenly there’s a hand covering his and all the tension leaves his body when Sebastian whispers: “Relax, we got this, Killer…”

 _Yeah, they got this, worked for this, deserved this. And Sebastian got him and gets him, every time._ He nods to his right where Sebastian sits and smiles when their eyes meet. Blaine takes a deep breath and exhales. It’s only the 3rd group performing yet. Then the 4th. And the 5th – Blaine rolls his eyes. _James…._

Throat Explosion enters the stage, all in black with pink blazers and Blaine sees that James takes his spot in the first row. Blaine huffs. _Of course. He’s an exchange student who probably hasn’t been here for more than a few months but he’s singing lead for his club at their national school choir competition. He’s just sooo amazing…_

[ _“You are my fire,_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fndeDfaWCg&ab_channel=BackstreetBoysVEVO)

_The one desire,_

_Believe when I say,_

_I want it that way!”_

Unfortunately, when they start Blaine has to realize that James **is** amazing. He’s the focus of the group, everyone else more like backup singers dancing around him, but his voice is smooth, his smile wide and the song choice excellent. “I want it that way” blends into a mashup of “Don’t stop the music/ The way you lie”. Finally, their last song comes up. _Wait, he knows that intro…_

[ _“She walks around, like she got nothing to loose._ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6ErNkiDgT0&ab_channel=micapunterXD)

_A pretty girl like that, with nothing to prove._

_And I see, she looking right at me, yeah._

_She's like an angel running round in the skies._

_Thought I was dreamin' but I opened my eyes._

_Fantasy, became reality – my baby makes me feel like I’ve been livin’ in fairytail.”_

Memories come rushing back: _Too loud music, dancing with Sam, buzzing under his skin. And then… Sebastian’s hands everywhere, his face so close and his white shirt sticky and clinging to **those abs.**_

Blaine inhales sharply.

_A soft “Where’s your room?” in Blaine’s ear and a “Meet you there…”. Just like that, Seb was gone and Blaine only hesitated for a minute before he followed him, across the dance floor, up the stairs, closing his door behind him while his heart was pounding in his ears. Sebastian almost seemed to be in awe when he whispered “You came…” and “Are you sure?” and Blaine could only answer “Yes” because how could he deny him when Sebastian was looking like **that** and anticipation made Blaine want this so much._

He shakes his head to come back to his senses. That night had been a moment for them, when suddenly everything was possible and there was a _maybe_ that kept lingering since then whenever they were together. _Maybe_. Blaine looks to his right and watches Sebastian’s face. He seems to go through the same flashback, his eyes wide and his mouth slightly open until he gets himself under control again and he looks back.

They don’t say anything, don’t hear James finishing the first chorus, then the second. Blaine just feels that Sebastian’s hand is still squeezing his and he looks down at their joined fingers. Sebastian obviously takes it as some kind of request and he pulls back his hand. The moment is over when Sebastian looks at the stage again, Blaine following suit.

Just in time, it seems, because James obviously found Sebastian in the crowd, his smile turning a little cheekier when he sings the bridge:

_“Damn!_

_He got it! Oh! Oh!_

_He got it!_

_Man! He got it!_

_Watch how he flaunted!_

_Yeah! I want it!_

_Oh! Oh! I want it!_

_'Cause damn! He got it!_

_Oh! Oh! He got it!”_

Blaine’s mouth falls open when he hears Sebastian laugh out loud. _He?!_ Blaine is very sure it’s “ **she** got it” in the original lyrics and _he can’t be serious, he did not just change the lines of a song to make it sound like a suggestive innuendo for Sebastian in front of everyone!_

Blaine is in shock and Sebastian seems to understand it, too, because he laughs again and shakes his head. _That’s not funny, that is… it’s… so… inappropriate, doesn’t that guy have decency?_ He doesn’t think when he grabs Sebastian’s arm and pulls him down.

“Seb, I think we should go. Now.”

There are still crinkles around his eyes when he turns his head to look at Blaine with a confused look: “What do you mean, go where?”

 _Yeah, go where?_ “Backstage. You know, to warm up, get ready. We’re up soon.”

“B, we can at least wait until this performance is over.” His voice sounds amused by Blaine’s proposition. “We’re not up for a good half an hour and I guess they’ll soon announce a short break anyway.”

“But…” _He’s running out of arguments, shit._

Sebastian’s look turns softer when he squeezes Blaine’s hand that’s still wrapped tight around his biceps. “Relax, Killer, I mean it – we’re good. No need to be nervous. Hey, it’s the second time for you, shouldn’t you be more chill? It’s gonna be fine.”

He lets go of Blaine’s hand and Blaine releases his grip. He sighs and hopes Sebastian thinks that it’s because of his stage fright and not because he’s frustrated with this whole… James-situation.

Sebastian was right, after the 6th performance, they announce a 10 minute break and the Warblers make their way backstage. Everyone is eagerly chatting and they only realize they’re up soon when a group of girls in black-and-white-dresses gets up and opens the door to take their place on stage behind the curtain. They're named “The Singsongs” or something equally ridiculous but, more important, they’re 9th in line. The Warblers are next.

“Okay, boys, let’s gather in front of the door for a minute”, Hunter drones over excited whispering. “Months of practice have prepared us for this moment. We’re ready. We know our competition is strong but we wouldn’t want it any other way, it will make winning so much more valuable.”

He looks around and smiles at Sebastian.

“We have everything we need: A well-arranged choreography, two amazing soloists and three incredible songs to fill with life. Practice was hard on each of us, and Sebastian and I were even harder on you.” He looks at Jeff.

“We tried our best to make you your best and eliminate every flaw. In the process, we gained something very precious back”, he looks at Blaine who blushes, “because when all is said and all is done, this group is more than a Glee club. It’s a brotherhood of men just like Dalton is more than a school. For many of us, this is the last school choir competition before we go off to college, so let’s take this chance to make Dalton proud and live up to the legacy we were born to carry.”

The door opens and they rush through. Blaine gets handed a microphone. _That’s it. All or nothing now._

“Hello everyone! I’m Blaine Anderson and we’re the Dalton Academy Warblers all the way from Westerville, Ohio. Enjoy the show!” He winks.

They get into formation and hit the first notes of “Bohemian Rhapsody”.

It’s flying by in a blur. Adrenaline pumps through Blaine’s veins and he’s so proud when they finish the first song without a hitch. He breaks out of the group, his body is on auto-pilot and he’s damn near sure that singing never felt this good. His brothers literally having his back and he just wants the audience to see and feel what he feels right now: The rush, the high, the security.

****

His heart stutters when “Don’t stop me now” is followed by the soft harmonies of “Dark Side” and Sebastian joins him. He can’t take his eyes off of him. Watching Sebastian perform is mesmerizing. Flawless movements, strong voice and so much feeling laced around every word.

_“Everybody's got a dark side_

_Do you love me? Can you love mine?_

_Nobody's a picture perfect_

_But we're worth it_

_You know that we're worth it_

_Will you love me even with my dark side?”_

They circle closer towards each other and meet in the middle of the stage.

_“Don't run away, don't run away_

_Don't run away, promise you'll stay.”_

They stare at each other and all Blaine wants to do is grab Sebastian’s hand and pull him even closer. Applause roars and breaks their bubble. They blink and turn to look at the audience, the rest of the Warblers following and getting in formation for their bow.

That’s it. That was everything they could do. It’s all up to the judges now. He looks at Sebastian who looks already so proud that Blaine can't help the warmth spreading in his chest.

It feels like the air is buzzing when all groups gather for the award ceremony. They shriek ( _very manly!_ ) when the presenter asks them on stage together with Thorat Explosion and another group they didn't see. Blaine feels someone reach for his left hand and looks at Trent who is staring at him with wide eyes, mumbling: "I'm so scared, Blaine..." He smiles at him reassuringly when suddenly, there is applause and a girl in a polka-dot dress takes center stage as she accepts the trophy. Looks like it's James' group or the Warblers.

"And our next Nationals champion with a slight 5-point-lead for 'general performance as a group' is..."

Blaine looks to his right and without further over-thinking grabs Sebastian's hand. He needs this now. The shudder and electricity this touch ignites distracts him for a moment, he just realizes the winner was announced when he suddenly finds himself in Sebastian's arms and surrounded by navy blue and red and shouting of “We won” and “We made it” and “Guys, I can’t believe it”. Blaine can’t neither.

They won, they really won! Tears sting in his eyes, his whole body feels like its floating and he looks up at Sebastian. Sebastian’s eyes sparkle a deep forest green, sweat is running down his temple but he looks just so happy, Blaine has to touch his face to make sure this isn’t a dream. He suddenly feels how he’s being pulled up to stand on his tip toes and, _wow, Sebastian seems so much closer now, and even closer, closer_ until their lips meet.

Blaine closes his eyes and kisses back until he’s being rudely pulled away and hoisted up, up, up on Beat’s and Thad’s shoulders. They are all chanting but all Blaine can see is Sebastian smiling up at him when Hunter pushes the trophy in his hands. _They won, they really won._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhhhhh, what?! Yes, I did it. Also, do I think it's hilarious that Jay sings a James Maslow-song? Very much so. Can't wait for you to read the next chapter.
> 
> (Unfortunately I have no idea where I once found the beautiful fanart at the bottom to give credit where credit is so due. If you know them, please let me know.)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The moment you've been waiting for 🥰 I really miss San Francisco, this spot in front of the Ghiradelli factory is really my favorite. I think I have a SanFrancisco-highlight on Insta if you want to see what I mean.

They are all still riding a high when they arrive at Ghiradelli park after a quick pitstop at their hotel to change into some regular clothes. He hasn’t talked to Blaine since… well, since what happened on stage. He still doesn’t know why he did it, what it meant that Blaine kissed him back, he just knows that it was the most amazing feeling he ever had. He also knows he’ll have an answer soon. He promised to give Blaine the weekend and the weekend was almost over, tomorrow they’d be flying back home.

There are some tents on the small stripe of a beach and some blankets on the grass leading up the hill from the sea to the street. Music blasts from speakers all over the place and there seem to be some mics for later performances. They’re looking around to find an empty spot when suddenly, he hears a “Seb! Hey boys, over here!” and when he looks in the direction where the voice came from, he sees Jay waving them over.

“Hi mate, you alright?”, Jay gets up and hugs him, then looks at the rest and waves in greeting. “Sit down, sit down, there’s enough room for everyone! So this is Louis", he points at the other boys and girls sitting with him, probably the rest of Thorat Explosion, "Jen, Nathalie, Patricia, Josh, Liam, Niall, Zayn, Liam Susan, Malika, Lydia. The rest is... somewhere around here." He laughs.

"Come on, sit down", he grabs Sebastian's arm and pulls him with him while he flops down. Sebastian loses his balance and almost lands in Jay's lap before he can catch himself. "Whoops, not so fast, tiger, you should buy me dinner first", Jay winks and Sebastian laughs and shakes his head before he adjusts his seating position.

Blaine stands for a few moments and looks like he'd rather be anywhere else but then he takes the seat to his other side. Sebastian wants to ask what's wrong but Blaine averts his eyes and pulls at the grass he's sitting on.

“Seriously, you nailed it, I am so impressed”, Jay says and takes his hand again, “no one I would’ve rather lost to, honestly, and it was so close. I still don’t know if I was more nervous for you or for us, you really deserved it.”

Sebastian smiles and squeezes his hand in thanks: “Thanks, Jay, I still can’t believe it…”

“Well, I can”, Beat drones from behind him, “we fucking worked for it, we fucking killed it and we fucking won!”

Sebastian rolls his eyes and releases Jay’s hand.

“And now, we’re gonna party like we mean it, where’s the booze, Brit Boy?”

Jay laughs. “There are several coolers over there, there should be enough for everyone.”

Thad, Beat and Nick get up and grab a few bottles of beer and soon, they are all chatting away. Sebastian just watches them. He’d never admit it, of course, but when he looks around at all those guys, he realizes: _He’s gonna miss them._

Now that Nationals is over, there are only a few weeks of school left. Some have already started on sending out college applications, the rest of the Seniors will start next week. Soon they’ll be packing up their dorm rooms, attend one last lesson, one last Warbler practice, one last prom night before heading home for the summer or move to a city of their choice. Sure, they’ll promise to stay in touch, try hard for a few weeks but they’ll loose sight of each other eventually. _It’s just what happens, right?_

As much as he didn’t want to come here, threw more than one temper tantrum when his mom made him move to bumfuck-Ohio from the land-of-all-good-France, Westerville slowly but steadily sneaked up on him and into his heart. He looks to his left where Blaine is in a heated discussion with Jeff. _Yeah, Ohio wasn’t the only thing that sneaked its way into his heart._ He smiles and shakes his head. _Blaine Anderson had always been an exception with everything…_

“Want to dance?” Jay’s voice brings him back to the moment. He turns around and looks at him.

“Sure”, he smiles and gets up, “show me what you got, Pretty Boy!”

Jay just laughs, takes his hand and pulls him towards the beach where they set up the improvised dance floor.

“Show me what you got, Pretty Boy!”

Blaine hears the words and turns his head, just in time to see Sebastian and Jay leave towards the beach – hand in hand. His face falls. _Where are they going?_

“Blaine, did you hear what I said?”

“Sorry, what?” He turns around to face Jeff again. "Where's Sebastian going?"

"Sebastian? I don't know, grab something to drink? Dance?"

Blaine huffs. "I can't believe him."

"Whom? Sebastian?"

"James!"

"What's wrong with James?"

"Don't you see it? He's throwing himself at Sebastian. It's really embarassing, I mean, god, have some decency, will you?"

"I don't see the problem."

"What? He's drooling all over him. Someone needs to stop this, poor Sebastian, right?"

"Poor Sebastian?" Jeff laughs out loud. "Look, I'm not into men" _Sure, of course, because Nick is a girl..._ "but if I was? Having a handsome and nice guy that you'll never see again being all over me while I'm out celebrating in a foreign city? Sounds pretty good to me."

Blaine's brows draw together and his lips are in a tight line. _Sebastian's not like that, not anymore. Right?_

"Do you really think so? That this is what Sebastian wants?"

Jeff sighs. “Dude, if you like him that much, go get him. This constant pining over each other gives me a headache.”

Blaine blushes a deep red and looks down. _Good that it’s already getting dark…_

“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about”, he looks at Jeff again and smiles, ”sorry, what did you say?”

Jeff doesn’t look convinced. “You and Sebastian, it’s ridiculous, really. You think we don’t see it? We do! All those longing glances, the lingering touches, the ‘private practice’”, he puts that in quotation marks, “and the stupid fight this week? You really need to get your act together, both of you.”

Blaine scrunches his face. “What do you mean ‘for weeks’?”

“Are you oblivious? ... Wow, you totally are.”

“I know that Sebastian finds me attractive, he told me that straight from the start but it’s not what you think, Jeff…”

“Not what I think? What I think, Blaine, is that he used to be a huge prick. Then you came back, you became friends again and suddenly, Sebastian is only yelling at Freshmen every other day, helps Nick with his studies and bought Trent a teddy after he made him cry 3 times in an hour. And all it takes is one ‘please’ or scowl from you or even just the slightest possibility that this could make you happy.”

Blaine shakes his head in disbelief. _Sebastian wanted in his pants, that’s why he used to do those things… right?_

“And you, you’re even worse. For some reason, there’s this mantra in your head that you need to be with Kurt, that you are meant to be together forever and ever, that Sebastian is dangerous and a risk and not boyfriend-material. Yet, when Barry started spending time with him – not even hitting on him, just taking time away from you – you were in a bad mood for a week and then imploded. And look how you talked to and about that British dude today just because he really wants to play with him.”

“James”, Blaine mumbles, “his name is James. And I know exactly what he wants to play...”

“Yeah, well, and it looks like he just started explaining the rules to Sebastian, if you know what I mean", Jeff exclaims and Blaine whips his head around.

 _There they are, Seb and James_ : Seb’s arms rest on top of James’ shoulder, James’s arms firmly on Sebastian’s hips while they are laughing and dancing to “Live while we’re young” by this boyband Blaine keeps forgetting the name of. _Who cares about that, look at them! This isn’t right!_

“They look like they’re both having fun…”

Jeff laughs. “Blaine, you can’t seriously feel threatened by some random cute boy who hits on Sebastian! He’s from another city, hell, another country. And as much as Sebastian probably likes the intention, you know he’d rather dance with you… we all saw that kiss today.”

 _That kiss… yeah, that was – something._ Something he didn’t expect and didn’t think about, just acted and his body still tingles when he remembers.

“Look, you and Kurt were cute and great for a while. Do you really want to cling to that and risk missing something equally great or even better just because you’re scared?”

He looks at Jeff, then back to Sebastian and James. “I don't know..."

Sebastian grins and throws his head back.

_“Let's go crazy, crazy, crazy 'til we see the sun_

_I know we only met, but let's pretend it's love_

_And never, never, never stop for anyone_

_Tonight, let's get some_

_And live while we're young_

_(Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)_

_(Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)_

_And live while we're young (Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh)_

_Tonight, let's get some_

_And live while we're young.”_

They sing the song into each other's face and Sebastian just laughs. Maybe it’s the Nationals-high, maybe it’s partying at a beach in San Francisco, maybe it’s Jay’s body dancing so close to him but he’s feeling totally awesome. The wind picks up and messes with Jay’s curls and _his head seems closer somehow, doesn’t it?_ He feels hands sliding from his hips to his butt and slip into his back pockets. Jay’s breath smells like lemon and _wait, he shouldn’t be able to smell his breath? Oh no, oh no, oh no, no, no, no, no…_

He pulls back slightly and whispers “Jay…” because he doesn’t know what else to say. Green eyes snap open and looks at Sebastian, they’re wide and disappointment is evident. _Oh shit..._

__

“Jay, I… I can’t…” Sebastian tries to explain but that’s all he’s got. _He can’t._

Jay pulls back and slides his hands out of his pockets again. Then, he smiles. “Yeah, I figured…”, he shakes his head, “he’s really lucky, you know? It’s because of Blaine, right? At first, I wasn’t sure if you were really together – “

“We’re not.”

Jay chuckles. “Yes, you are, mate. You might not be official but the way you look at each other, it’s pretty clear. I just thought, I’d test the waters a little.” He grins. “You are a _tease_ , Sebastian Symthe.”

“I’m sorry…”

Jay bumps their shoulders together and grins. “It’s alright, man. Now I can tell the story of how I met the man of my dreams on the steps on a school in San Francisco only to crawl into bed heartbroken and all shattered. My friends at home will love that drama!” He laughs and Sebastian joins in.

“Plus…”, Jay starts when suddenly, the upbeat music stops and changes to an acoustic guitar and a voice Sebastian would recognize in a choir of hundreds.

_“Your hand fits in mine like it's made just for me_

_But bear this mind, it was meant to be_

_And I'm joining up the dots with the freckles on your cheeks_

_And it all makes sense to me_

_I know you've never loved_

_The crinkles by your eyes when you smile_

_You've never loved your stomach or your thighs_

_The dimples in your back at the bottom of your spine_

_But I'll love them endlessly.”_

Sebastian turns around where they spotted the microphones earlier and, indeed, there was Blaine with a mic and a guitar.

_“I won't let these little things slip out of my mouth_

_But if I do, it's you_

_Oh, it's you, they add up to_

_I'm in love with you_

_And all these little things_

_You can't go to bed without a cup of tea_

_And maybe that's the reason that you talk in your sleep_

_And all those conversations are the secrets that I keep_

_Though it makes no sense to me_

_I know you never loved the sound of your voice on tape_

_You never want to know how much you weight_

_You still have to squeeze into your jeans_

_But you're perfect to me.”_

Their eyes find each other and Sebastian feels his heart sink at how cheesy and over the top and beautiful this is… whatever this is.

_“And I've just let these little things slip out of my mouth_

_'Cause it's you, oh, it's you_

_It's you, they add up to_

_And I'm in love with you_

_And all these little things_

_I won't let these little things slip out of my mouth_

_But if it's true, it's you_

_It's you, they add up to_

_I'm in love with you_

_And all your little things.”_

The audience goes nuts when the song is finished. Blaine thanks them, puts down the guitar and leaves the makeshift-stage, straight towards Sebastian.

“Hey, Seb.” Blaine bites his lip. This can go two ways now but he has to try, has to be brave for once… “You liked the song?”

“Flawless as ever, Killer.”

Blaine nods. “Umm, could I, umm, talk to you for a second?” He quickly glances at Jay. “Alone?”

“I’ll leave you alone, see you later!”, Jay says, pads Sebastian’s shoulder and smiles at Blaine before he makes his way towards his group again.

“You want to walk a bit?”, Sebastian asks and Blaine nods.

They walk uphill and sit down on the grass in front of the Ghiradelli chocolate factory and face the water. They can see the sun setting behind the Golden Gate Bridge, the wind makes tiny waves swash over the sand down there, the sky a dark orange and red. They sit there in silence for a moment.

“It’s beautiful here”, Blaine states.

Sebastian hums in approval. “You wanted to talk about the weather?”

Blaine shakes his head and turns to face Sebastian. “What did you really think about the song?”

“I was honest, you were flawless as ever, B.”

“Did you listen?”

“To the song?”

“To the lyrics.”

“Yes.”

Sebastian shifts so he's on his back, looking up at Blaine.

“I’m just not sure how to interpret – ”

“I don’t like James.” Blaine’s eyes widen in surprise of his sudden confession. “I mean, he seems nice and he’s probably a great guy, he’s just… I don’t like it when he’s touching you or winking at you or flirting with you. Or even more, when you flirt back. I know, I have no right to tell you who to talk to and we’re not a couple and all that… I just wanted you to know.”

Blaine sighs and looks at his hands that are fumbling.

“I had the same feeling about Barry when you started hanging out. I told you, it was because you spent all your time with him and while that was true, I think it was also something deeper. A… fear… that you might loose interest because you finally realized, I’m not worth the effort. That maybe dating should be easier than waiting for someone who might not come around. And while I was afraid you might find an alternative in Barry, maybe my biggest fear was that it would’ve been my fault because I waited too long.”

“Barry and me are just friends.”

Blaine looks up again. “I know that now. I just… I had that feeling again today when I saw you with James. He’s… cute and funny and he has this accent Americans love and he’s from Europe and you love Europe and I’ve never been and I thought, maybe I did it again, I waited too long and let a possibility slip right through my fingers.”

“You know that the London and Paris are not in the same country, right?”, Sebastian chuckles and Blaine shoves him lightly.

“I know that… and don’t mock me, I’m trying to have a serious conversation here.”

Sebastian grins. “Sorry, go ahead.”

“I think, I, umm, I’d like to ask you if you, maybe, would like to go see a movie when we’re home again. And dinner, maybe.”

Blaine shifts closer.

His hands feel sweaty and he’s breathing flat. He feels his blood rush through his ears and his heart beat hard in his chest. _This is it, all or nothing._

“Like a, umm, a date? Because in case you haven’t noticed, that song was my attempt at a last-minute big romantic gesture and I know you find them ridiculous but I don’t and I know it’s no impromptu dance routine but I didn’t really have much time to think because I saw how James was kissing you and I really didn’t want this to happen.”

He’s rambling, he doesn’t care.

Sebastian smirks. “Soo… you’re asking me out because you saw another boy try to kiss me?”

He puts his hand on Blaine's neck.

“Umm…”

“You don’t want anyone else touching me?”

Blaine inhales sharply when Sebastian shuffles even closer.

“No one taught you how to share, Killer?”

“I don’t want to share you…”, Blaine whispers and if Seb’s head wasn’t mere inches away, he would’ve missed it.

“Possessive… I kinda like that. _So sexy_ …”

Seb’s lips brush against his and Blaine’s head is spinning but he breathes out “Is that a ‘yes’ to my question?”

Seb can barely answer “Yes” before Blaine pushes forward that last inch to press their lips together.

Heat uncoils in his belly and he feels something fluttering like all those months ago in the Dalton library. Just now Blaine knows it’s not because he’s hungry or has low blood sugar, it's because everything’s Sebastian and his nerve endings are like fireworks. He pushes closer and grabs Sebastian’s shirt on both sides of his torso, just to have something to hold on to.

When they pull back because they need some air, they rest their foreheads together. Seb pushes a few stray curls behind his ear and Blaine nuzzles their noses. They stay like that for a few moments.

_“I left my heart in San Francisco_

_High on a hill, it calls to me.”_

Blaine can’t help but laugh when Sebastian starts singing.

“You’re somewhat ridiculous…”

Sebastian grins. “ _Au contraire_ , I think you’ll find that I’m completely ridiculous. Anyway, you asked me out, there’s no way back now!”

Blaine laughs, gets up and takes the other’s hand: “Come on, we should go back to the Warblers until they report us missing.”

Sebastian sighs but gets up anyway before he interlaces their fingers.

“Oh, and Seb?”

Sebastian turns around.

Blaine smiles.

“I think I might be in love with you, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What she gonna write in the last part of this chapter you ask? Oh well... there's still a book named Kurt for Blaine to close and put back on the shelf, right? See you for the grand finale on Thursday


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, that was a lot. So happy we're finally here! I just scrolled through my document, this story already takes about 100 pages, it's about the same length as my master's thesis (and a little more fun - but just a little, I wrote that about Darren and Grant, too, so...). Hope you like this last part of the chapter, merry christmas ❤

The alarm startles him way too soon. His whole body feels heavy and his head hurts. Blaine groans when he turns around and stop the piercing sound. He takes a look at the time: 8:30 am. They barely slept 5 hours but they have to get going, have breakfast, check out, head to the airport to get home again. It seems like David is in the bathroom but he should probably grab his clothes and pack the rest into his bag. Blaine opens his eyes slowly and heaves himself up. _Ouch, his head…_

__

His headache pounds behind his temples but then the memories of the night before come back when he unlocks his phone and sees messages from Sam, Tina, Artie, Mike and even Marley and Jake. He locks the screen and throws it on the bed, he’ll answer that later. For now, he just wants to bask in the giddiness he feels when he thinks about what happened last night.

Not only did they win Nationals, not only did he finally make up his mind, he **kissed** Sebastian.

He **held hands** with Sebastian.

He **kissed** and **held hands** and **slow-danced** with Sebastian at a beach until early morning hours.

And then, they went back to the hotel at 3am, two boys in a big city and Blaine was pretty sure he hasn’t felt that good for a very long time. Sebastian kissed him goodnight for about 10 minutes straight and then some more, before they eventually parted and went into their respective rooms. Not that they didn’t want to spend the night cuddling in one bed but they were both pretty sure neither Hunter, nor David would fancy waking up to their make-out-noises. Sure, they didn’t really specify about what they were but _that could wait, right?_ What was important was that Blaine has asked Sebastian out and Sebastian said “yes” and they were happy.

Just as he thinks that, the door to the bathroom opens and David emerges, accompanied by a wave of damp air and the fresh smell of soap. Blaine smiles and him, grabs his clothes and heads for the bathroom to shower.

About half an hour later the two boys leave the room to go to the breakfast room on the other side of the hotel. They pass Sebastian’s and Hunter’s room and Blaine decides to knock. It’s not that he **needs** to see Sebastian… but he really **wants** to. Maybe just to make sure he didn’t have a too vividly dream.

The door swings open and Blaine’s heart jumps at the sight of Sebastian’s handsome face resting against the door.

“Good morning, Killer! Couldn’t wait to see me at breakfast?”

Blaine smiles sheepishly and looks down. “Maybe not…”, he says and his eyes flutter closed when Sebastian leans forward and gently kisses his lips.

“This is how we say ‘good morning’ from now on…”, he whispers and Blaine grins.

“Eww, can you do that somewhere else? I think I might throw up…”, Hunter groans somewhere behind Sebastian

“He’s just jealous because his hot blonde chick from Crawford doesn’t want to put out for him and he still tries to get over me.”

“Not remotely bi-curious, Smythe, that includes you.” Hunter comes up behind Sebastian and tries to push past them.

“Sure, keep telling yourself you’re not crying yourself to sleep over me every night…”

“Actually, Smythe”, Hunter stops in the small gap between Sebastian’s body and the door frame, “if I had wanted, I could’ve had you shivering and begging under me 100 times.”

He winks. “But you’re Blaine’s problem now…” With that, he disappears and Sebastian laughs. Blaine frowns.

He’ll never get their friendship… _or whatever they had, maybe they really?_ – but then, Sebastian kisses his forehead and gently pushes him back, so that he can close the door and Blaine forgets that weird thought he just had.

The city disappears underneath them and Blaine has the feeling he already misses it. He sees the pretty, colorful houses go smaller and smaller, sees them heading towards the big blue sea and thinks about the small stripe of beach again.

“I think I’ll miss it”, he says with his nose pressed against the small window.

“What?” Sebastian’s head appears next to his.

“San Francisco.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty.”

“It is. And the people are so nice and open. No one looked twice at us holding hands, did you notice that?”

“They’re probably high all the time, the whole city smells like weed”, Sebastian chuckles and Blaine gently shoves him.

“Well, yeah, but I’m serious. Ohio, Westerville, it’s home, you know? But the freedom of walking down the street hand in hand with another boy, kiss him silly in the streets if we felt like it? I want that, Seb.”

Sebastian leans his head against his. “Sure and you should have that, B. Just wait until we’re done with school and going to college. You don’t have to stay in Ohio, you can go anywhere you want. New York, LA, San Francisco… even abroad, London, Berlin, Paris.”

Blaine smiles. “Yeah, just a few more weeks. We haven’t really talked about where we both want to go for college, where do you apply?”

“I don’t think we should discuss that.”

Blaine frowns, tears his eyes away from The City by the Bay and turns to look at Sebastian.

“Why not?”

“I just think we should apply where we want and then make the best choice by ourselves. I don’t want you to choose a college based on how close or far away it is from where I’ll go and the other way around.”

Blaine sits up straight and stares at Sebastian. It seems like a reasonable argument but _maybe ending up in another long-distance-relationship?_ He’s not sure he wants that.

“I disagree and would like to offer another proposition.”

Sebastian chuckles and leans back in his seat. “Go ahead.”

“I suggest we do what you said and apply where we really want to go and maybe pick a favorite or two. But then, when the letters arrive, we take part in the yearly Warbler tradition of opening all the letters together. And after that, we have a serious and honest conversation about what our favorites were. Who knows, maybe we both already pick the same city or cities close to each other? Or we don’t get in and our second or third favorites match?”

“Sounds good.” Sebastian leans in and whispers “You’re very sexy when you talk like a grown-up, all serious and earnest…” and Blaine blushes a deep shade of red.

“Shut up”, he mumbles and gets comfortable in his seat.

Besides him, Sebastian gets comfortable, too, wraps an arm around Blaine and Blaine adjusts his travel pillow so that his head rests against Sebastian’s shoulder. He hums in contentment when Sebastian starts carding his fingers through his mostly gel-free curls (he figured it was no use to waste hair product when he’ll just sleep on the plane and will probably crawl into bed again when they’re back at Dalton). He closes his eyes, feels fingernails gently scraping at his scalp and fingertips tugging at his curls. He wraps an arm around Sebastian’s middle, finds his other hand, interlaces their fingers and falls asleep with his nose buried in Sebastian’s neck, surrounded by his scent of expensive perfume, soap and something that smells like _warmth_ and _affection_ and _maybethiscouldbereal_.

He’s still tired when their cabs make their way along the long driveway to Dalton and he just wants to go to bed and sleep the hangover off. Sebastian gets out before him and makes everyone come together before they head off to their dorm rooms.

“Okay, everyone, you know, I’m not a man of sappy words, that’s someone else’s department”, he pointedly looks at Blaine, “but I just wanted to say that this”, he grabs the golden trophy, “this is not only what I won or Blaine won or Hunter won for whatever he did - _ouch_!” Hunter poked him in the side and glares at him.

“Anyway, this trophy is something each and everyone of you won, something you deserved. And something I deserved for all the pain I had to endure with whipping you into shape, so you’re lucky we did win!” He winks. “So in order to celebrate properly, we’ll have a Warbler reunion next Friday. We’ll have some graduated members flying in, we’ll have booze and pizza and a short performance to get the party started. Now, go to bed, get some sleep and I’ll see you tomorrow at 3pm.”

They say their goodbye and leave. Blaine lingers behind and watches Sebastian who grins and starts posing when he notices: “What’s up, Killer, like what you see?”

Blaine smiles and shakes his head. _Yes. Yes, he does._

He’s so happy when he’s finally in a fresh PJ and crawls under his blanket. He settles in his pillow and closes his eyes. It’s dark in his room, the curtains drawn closed and he’s alone. Nick wasn’t too tired and he and Jeff decided to go out for dinner. _So inconspicuous, guys!_ Blaine had thought but he’s actually kind of glad that he has the room to himself.

He’s slowly drifting to sleep when he hears his phone ringing next to his head. _Oh please no… who could that be?_ He texted all the New Directions and he talked to his parents yesterday and texted them when he landed safely. Blaine fumbles around the mattress with his eyes still closed while his phone is still blaring.

“H’lo?”

“Wonder Boy! I heard you and your preppy peacocks won Nationals!”

“Santana?”

“Who else would it be, are you drunk? I swear, I’ll kick your boytoy’s ass if he gave you alcohol, it’s like getting a fetus drunk.”

“Wat? I’m not drunk. And I’m perfectly capable deciding how much alcohol I can tolerate, Santana, no need to put that on Sebastian.”

Santana laughs. “Good that you understand who I was talking about. You know, now that I’m living with Lady Lips his name is strictly forbidden. Seriously, it’s always like he-who-should-not-be-named.”

Blaine laughs. “Well, you are free to use his name when you’re talking to me.”

“Nah, I kinda like that I have to keep coming up with new nicknames, increases my creativity.”

“He’d like that you obviously feel the need to talk about him so often.”

“Ugh, don’t tell him, it’ll just get to his head and boost his too huge ego even further.”

Blaine laughs, she’s probably right. “Anyway, thank you for the congrats, we really appreciate it. Though I have to say, I thought you would call Sebastian instead of me.”

“Naw, don’t be silly, you’re still my favorite gay… and he didn’t pick up.”

“I’ll let him know.”

“Good. So, celebrating party tonight?”

“No, we’re all kind of exhausted. There was an aftershow beach party and we were out for quite a while. Next Friday, though, so if you’re free?”

“Hmm, I guess I could come home for summer break a little early. We’ll see, I’ll te – what?”

Blaine hears mumbling in the background.

“No, **I’m** talking to him now. Yes, I already did. God, you’re such a pain in the ass, Kurt!”

He hears her sigh and tenses when he hears his ex-boyfriend’s name. _He’s really not in the mood for –_

“Hi Blaine!”

_Well, shit._

“Hi Kurt…”

“So, you won Nationals, congratulations.”

“Thank you, we are all very happy.”

“I’m sure you are. You remember last year when we won? God, what a mess we were but it was really worth it, right? Guess it was the right decision for you to transfer, now you have two National championships under your belt.”

“You know that’s not why I transferred back…”

“Yeah, I know, I know. Still, NYADA will love that, you’re practically one shoe in.”

Blaine sighs, he really wanted to get a proper good night’s sleep before having that conversation.

“That’s very nice to say of you, Kurt, but, umm… I don’t plan on applying for NYADA.”

There’s hesitation in Kurt’s voice when he answers: “But… I thought that was the plan? Where else do you wanna apply, Julliard? I guess you could, but wouldn’t it be nice to have classes together again? Get coffee in breaks, you know, like the old days.”

“Kurt, I think I need to tell you something…”

He’s met with silence on the other side of the line. “Kurt, are you still there?”

“You’re not coming to New York at all, right?” Kurt sounds defeated, like if Blaine would just come to New York, everything would be alright and Blaine just killed that hope.

Blaine takes a deep breath. “I don’t know, Kurt, I really don’t. I plan on applying at NYU but I also want to apply somewhere else and, to be honest, NYU is not my first choice for college. But even if I end up in New York, I’m not coming there for you.”

“What do you mean?”, Kurt whispers.

“I really miss you, Kurt, I do. But… I miss my friend. I will always love you and cherish what we had but I can’t be your safety net anymore. And I don’t want you to be mine.”

“You don’t want to try again.”

“No.”

Blaine can hear Kurt breathing heavily and his eyes fill with tears. He doesn’t know why, maybe because he finally let’s go of something that always felt like safety but hasn’t been for a long time. Still, he needs to move on.

“I miss you. I love you, Blaine.”

“I love you, too. I’m just not in love with you anymore. I want the butterflies, the sweaty hands, I even want the heartbreak and the making up. And I feel like what we have is so broken, we can’t repair that, every shake and bump on the road would break it again and I would end up hating you. And I don’t want to hate you.”

“I don’t want that either.”

“We have to stop being afraid. I know it’s hard to say goodbye to what we know, but I want the butterflies, sweaty hands, heartbreak and making up for you, too, Kurt. I just don’t see how I can give you that.”

“Is this about Sebastian?”

Blaine takes a moment to consider the question. However, he shakes his head.

“No, it’s not. I mean, we agreed to go on a date but I’m not choosing him over you. I’m choosing me. I need to move on. Not for Sebastian or any relationship, for myself. And you should, too.”

“I’ll never forget you, Blaine.”

Blaine laughs shakily. “Well, good, because you can’t, if I don’t end up in New York, I plan to come there eventually for vacation and I need a local to show me around.” They both snicker. “Seriously, Kurt, I told you, I’ll carry what we had everywhere I go. Always.”

He hears Kurt inhale sharply. “Alright… I should let you sleep. I’m not saying goodbye because I told you, I’ll never say goodbye to you, but I will say goodnight.”

Blaine smiles and whipes the tears out of his eyes. “Goodnight, Kurt.”

“Oh, and Blaine?”

“U-hu?”

“I don’t like him.”

“I know you don’t.”

“But I really hope he makes you happy.”

A small smile curls around Blaine’s lips. “Yeah, me too…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew, what a ride!
> 
> Starting tomorrow (25th), we have new polls up for the next chapters. Just go to my Insta (ann_kathrin_seidel) and check my story-highlight #TeenageDream. If you don't have Instagram, no worries: You can also let me know what you'd like to include or what you liked/ didn't like in the comments here, leave promts on what you think could happen next or how you'd like this story to continue. NEW: Find me on TikTok @akfanficlove (or search for seblaine_glee), I'll post videos of the polls there, too ❤
> 
> I'll try to include your suggestions as good as I can!


	7. Next work: You're a real-life fantasy

Next work for my "Don't you want me teenage dream?"-series is out!

Seb and B are finally on the way and agreed on a first real date. That was about a week ago. Sure, they got coffee and hung out like they did before but with the end of the school year fast approaching and college choices to make, they didn't have the time yet for a proper date night. So, it's the Friday after their Nationals-win and Sebastian is getting ready for their big celebration-party when an old friend calls to ask about his new boyfriend. They aren't boyfriends, Sebastian tells her, but he is looking forward to see Blaine at the party, dance with him, hold him close... but what happens when Blaine's favorite song starts playing?

We have new polls up for the next chapters. Just go to my Insta (ann_kathrin_seidel) and check my story-highlight #TeenageDream. If you don't have Instagram, no worries: You can also let me know what you'd like to include or what you liked/ didn't like in the comments here, leave promts on what you think could happen next or how you'd like this story to continue. **NEW** : Find me on TikTok @akfanficlove (or search for seblaine_glee), I'll post videos of the polls there, too ❤

I'll try to include your suggestions as good as I can!

But first: Party time!

[Read it here!](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28247916)

**Author's Note:**

> Always feel free to leave some love and tell me what you think. Find me on Instagram (ann_kathrin_seidel), TikTok (akfanficlove) or Tumblr (akfanficlove) or in the comment section <3 Stay tuned for the next chapter!


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